Westpac Banking Corp Acquires 19,220 Shares of Expedia Group, Inc. $EXPE

Westpac Banking Corp raised its stake in shares of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) by 193.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,141 shares of the online travel company’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,220 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Expedia Group were worth $6,728,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Expedia Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $861,979,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Expedia Group by 24,899.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,808,466 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $386,560,000 after buying an additional 1,801,232 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Expedia Group by 25.0% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,645,732 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $779,275,000 after buying an additional 728,063 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Expedia Group by 594.0% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 583,830 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $165,405,000 after acquiring an additional 499,706 shares during the period. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in Expedia Group by 55.0% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,286,093 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $364,363,000 after acquiring an additional 456,176 shares during the period. 90.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Expedia Group Price Performance

Expedia Group stock opened at $264.94 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $242.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $244.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.43, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.73. The firm has a market cap of $32.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.23. Expedia Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $174.05 and a 52 week high of $303.80.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The online travel company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.55. Expedia Group had a return on equity of 84.33% and a net margin of 9.81%.The company had revenue of $3.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.35 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.40 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 16.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Expedia Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 28th were issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 28th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Expedia Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.90%.

Insider Transactions at Expedia Group

In other Expedia Group news, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 4,702 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.00, for a total value of $1,095,566.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 105,448 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,569,384. This trade represents a 4.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Lance A. Soliday sold 940 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.86, for a total transaction of $208,548.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 14,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,124,454.38. This represents a 6.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 5.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on EXPE. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Expedia Group from $252.00 to $246.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Expedia Group from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Expedia Group in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Expedia Group from $244.00 to $230.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twenty-two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $288.52.

Expedia Group Company Profile

Expedia Group (NASDAQ: EXPE) is a global travel technology company that operates an online marketplace connecting consumers, travel suppliers and third‑party partners. The company’s platform enables search, comparison and booking of travel products and services, including hotels, airline tickets, vacation rentals, car rentals, cruises and packaged travel. Its portfolio comprises consumer-facing travel brands as well as corporate travel solutions and technology services that serve both leisure and business travelers.

Key offerings include consumer booking platforms and mobile apps that aggregate inventory from hotels, vacation rental managers, airlines and car rental companies, alongside ancillary travel services such as trip insurance and activities.